Woman accused of vehicular homicide in Falmouth

Friday

New York resident Maruta Friedler was arraigned Thursday for her part in the death of a 48-year-old Lincoln woman on a Falmouth road in March.

FALMOUTH — New York resident Maruta Friedler was arraigned Thursday for her part in the death of a 48-year-old Lincoln woman on a local road in March.

Friedler, 74, was in Falmouth District Court on Thursday and was charged with motor vehicle homicide, according to court records.

Investigators say Friedler was driving down West Falmouth Highway on March 12 when she crossed the center line and collided with an oncoming car, killing Jenifer Thomas of Lincoln.

Friedler pleaded not guilty to motor vehicle homicide by negligent operation, negligent operation of a motor vehicle and a marked lanes violation. She was released on personal recognizance and is not allowed to drive, according to court records.

With Friedler's arraignment comes the first details of the crash, which killed Thomas and severely injured her elderly parents, who were attending a family function at a Falmouth nursing home prior to the crash.

Friedler told the police she had flown from New York to Providence on the day of the crash and rented a 2010 Dodge Avenger to drive to Cape Cod.

While traveling south on West Falmouth Highway, Friedler was looking for a sign to the Palmer Avenue Steamship Authority parking lot when her vehicle traveled over the center line and crashed into Thomas' 1995 Saturn sedan, she told the police.

She only noticed she was in the wrong lane "at the last second," according to the police report on the incident, "when it was too late."

But Thomas' father, who was in the Saturn, told the police both he and his daughter saw Friedler from about 300 feet away coming at them in the wrong lane prior to the impact. The man said Friedler's car was across the center line for so long that his daughter was able to pull all the way off the road and onto the unpaved shoulder.

But Friedler's car, which the man said was traveling between 40 and 50 mph, just kept coming, he said.

"He stated that at no time did (Friedler's vehicle) slow down or attempt to fix its driving and go back in its lane," according to the police report. "He stated (Friedler's vehicle) had more than enough time to fix its driving and get back in its lane prior to impacting their vehicle."

Thomas' mother suffered a fractured back, and her father had several broken ribs, according to the police report.

Peter Lloyd, Friedler's attorney, declined to comment when reached by phone Thursday and asked what caused his client to drift into oncoming traffic.

Shortly after the crash, Friedler told the police the "steering appeared loose" on her rental car, and the vehicle "swayed from side to side."

Friedler was taken to Falmouth Hospital for treatment, and the police said hospital staff told them the woman was acting "as if she was having a great day and did not get in an accident where someone was seriously injured."

She also told hospital staff and the police she had been in three crashes in the previous nine months, was suffering from a traumatic brain injury, recovering from a replaced hip and knee surgery, and taking "a lot of different prescriptions," according to the police report.

When notified of Thomas' death, Friedler was read her rights and requested a lawyer. Yet she continued to talk with the police, who warned her they were no longer able to speak about the crash.